CN106516133B

CN106516133B - Aircraft system and method for enhancing waypoint list display

Info

Publication number: CN106516133B
Application number: CN201610819857.5A
Authority: CN
Inventors: K.V.库尔卡尼
Original assignee: Honeywell International Inc
Current assignee: Honeywell International Inc
Priority date: 2015-09-14
Filing date: 2016-09-13
Publication date: 2022-04-15
Anticipated expiration: 2036-09-13
Also published as: EP3142093B1; EP3142093A1; CN106516133A; US20170075556A1

Abstract

An aircraft system and method for enhancing the display of waypoint listings. An aircraft system includes a flight management system configured to generate a flight plan having a plurality of waypoints. The aircraft system includes a processing unit configured to receive the flight plan and generate display commands representing the flight plan as a list of waypoints. The aircraft system also includes a display device configured to receive the display command and reproduce a first area having a portion of the list of waypoints and a scroll bar adjacent to the first area. The scroll bar includes a scroll region based on user input and a scroll indicator located within the scroll region to modify a portion of the list displayed in the first region. The display device is further configured to render a first symbol within the scroll zone that represents a first characteristic associated with at least one of the waypoints in the flight plan.

Description

Aircraft system and method for enhancing waypoint list display

Technical Field

The present invention relates generally to visual display systems for aircraft, and more particularly to visual display systems that produce an enhanced display of flight plan waypoints.

Background

Aircraft and aircraft systems continue to evolve in precision. Flight management systems are used on aircraft to integrate information from data sources and to perform or assist users in performing functions related to, for example, navigation, flight planning, guidance and navigation, and performance management. Many aircraft have a visual display system, such as a Multifunction Control Display Unit (MCDU) or Cockpit Display Unit (CDU), coupled to a flight management system that displays a number of different screen pages where a user can obtain information or perform functions. For example, such systems may be used to display flight plans.

Conventional displays can be problematic because generally it has a limited viewable area for a user to obtain a desired portion of a flight plan or other type of information. This can be a problem because a flight plan can have hundreds of waypoints and require long sequential navigation to reach the desired portion of the flight plan, which can be time consuming and inefficient.

Accordingly, it is desirable to provide a visual display system for an aircraft on which long flight plans are efficient and easy to view. Furthermore, other desirable features and characteristics of the present invention will become apparent from the subsequent detailed description of the invention and the appended claims, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and this background of the invention.

Disclosure of Invention

According to an exemplary embodiment, an aircraft system is provided. The aircraft system includes a flight management system configured to generate a flight plan having a plurality of waypoints. The aircraft system includes a processing unit coupled to flight management and configured to receive a flight plan. The processing unit is further configured to generate display commands representing the flight plan as a list of waypoints. The aircraft system also includes a display device coupled to the processing unit and configured to receive the display command and render (render) a first region having a portion of the list of waypoints and a scroll bar adjacent to the first region. The scroll bar includes a scroll region based on user input and a scroll indicator located within the scroll region to modify a portion of the list displayed in the first region. The display device is also configured to render a first symbol within the scroll zone that represents a first characteristic associated with at least one of the waypoints in the flight plan.

According to another exemplary embodiment, a method for displaying a flight plan is provided. The method comprises the following steps: generating a flight plan having a plurality of waypoints; identifying a first characteristic associated with at least one of a plurality of waypoints in a flight plan; generating a display on a display device having a first area with a portion of a list of a plurality of waypoints and a scrollbar adjacent to the first area; the scroll bar includes a scroll area based on user input and a scroll indicator located within the scroll area to modify a portion of a list displayed in the first area; and reproducing a first symbol representing a first characteristic within the scroll zone.

Drawings

The present invention will hereinafter be described in conjunction with the following drawing figures, wherein like numerals denote like elements, an

FIG. 1 is a schematic representation of an aircraft system having a visual display system in accordance with an exemplary embodiment;

FIG. 2 is a display generated by the aircraft system of FIG. 1 in accordance with an exemplary embodiment;

FIG. 3 is a display generated by the aircraft system of FIG. 1 in accordance with another exemplary embodiment;

FIG. 4 is a display generated by the aircraft system of FIG. 1 in accordance with another exemplary embodiment;

FIG. 5 is a display generated by the aircraft system of FIG. 1 in accordance with another exemplary embodiment; and

FIG. 6 is a flow chart of a method for displaying a flight plan.

Detailed Description

The following detailed description is merely exemplary in nature and is not intended to limit the invention or the application and uses of the invention. As used herein, the word "exemplary" means "serving as an example, instance, or illustration. Thus, any embodiment described herein as "exemplary" is not necessarily to be construed as preferred or advantageous over other embodiments. All of the embodiments described herein are exemplary embodiments provided to enable persons skilled in the art to make or use the invention and not to limit the scope of the invention which is defined by the claims. Furthermore, there is no intention to be bound by any expressed or implied theory presented in the preceding technical field, background, brief summary or the following detailed description.

Broadly, exemplary embodiments described herein include an aircraft system having an aircraft visual display system with a display device, such as a Multifunction Control Display Unit (MCDU) or a Cockpit Display Unit (CDU). According to an exemplary embodiment, the system enables more efficient navigation of a flight plan on a display device. For example, the system may render a display with a scroll bar having symbols representing characteristics of groups of waypoints or other aspects of the flight plan (e.g., flight phase, waypoint type, and/or arrival time).

FIG. 1 is a schematic representation of an aircraft system 100 having a visual display system 110 coupled to a flight management system 150 and one or

more data sources

160, 162, 164. The components and subcomponents of system 100 may be coupled together in any suitable manner (e.g., with a data bus). Although system 100 appears in fig. 1 to be arranged as an integrated system, system 100 is not so limited and may also include arrangements whereby one or more aspects of system 100 are separate components or subcomponents of another system located on or external to an aircraft.

The visual display system 110 includes a processing unit 120, a display device 130, and a user interface 140. In general, the visual display system 110 displays information from the flight management system 150 via the display device 130 and enables interaction between a user (e.g., a pilot or other type of operator) and the flight management system 150, as described in more detail below. Additional information regarding operation will be provided below following the brief introduction of each component.

As mentioned above, the processing unit 120 may be a computer processor associated with flight planning and management functions, in particular, for example, the display and navigation of a list of waypoints in a flight plan. In an exemplary embodiment, the processing unit 120 is at least operable to receive and/or retrieve aircraft flight management information (e.g., from the flight management system 150 and the

data sources

160, 162, 164). As introduced above and discussed in more detail below, the processing unit 120 additionally calculates and generates display commands for displaying flight management information. The processing unit 120 may function as a graphical display generator to generate display commands based on algorithms or other machine instructions stored in the processing unit 120 or in a separate memory component. Processing unit 120 then sends the generated display command to display device 130 for presentation to the user. The processing unit 120 may additionally receive and generate display commands based on input via the user interface 140.

Depending on the embodiment, processing unit 120 may be implemented or realized with a general purpose processor, a content addressable memory, a digital signal processor, an application specific integrated circuit, a field programmable gate array, a suitable programmable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic, a processing core, discrete hardware components, or any combination thereof. In practice, the processing unit 120 includes processing logic that may be configured to perform the functions, techniques, and processing tasks or methods associated with the operation of the system 100. Processing unit 120 may also include any suitable type of memory or data storage, such as, for example, RAM, ROM, EEPROM, flash memory, optical or magnetic storage devices, or any other medium that may be used to store and access desired information.

A display device 130 is coupled to the processing unit 120 for rendering information to a user based on display commands. In one exemplary embodiment, the display device 130 may be a multifunction monitor, unit, or any display suitable for displaying various symbols and information, such as a Multifunction Control Display Unit (MCDU), a cockpit display device (CDU), a main flight display (PFD), and/or a navigation display. Any suitable type of display medium may be provided that is capable of visually presenting multi-color or single-color flight information to a pilot or other flight crew, such as, for example, various types of CRT displays, LCD, OLED displays, plasma displays, projection displays, HDD, HUD, etc.

As described above, user interface 140 is coupled to processing unit 120 to allow a user to interact with display device 130 and/or other elements of system 100. The user interface may be implemented as a keypad, touch pad, keyboard, mouse, touch panel, joystick, knob, row select key, or another suitable device adapted to receive input from a user. In further embodiments, the user interface 140 is implemented as audio input and output devices, such as speakers, microphones, audio transducers, audio sensors, and the like. In some embodiments, the user interface may be incorporated into the display device 130. For example, in one embodiment, the display device 130 and the user interface 140 are integrated into an interactive MCDU having a display screen and keyboard, touch screen, and/or other mechanisms for function, display, and/or cursor control.

The flight management system 150 is coupled to the display system 110 and one or

more data sources

160, 162, 164 and is generally used to support navigation, flight planning, and other aircraft control functions and to provide real-time data and/or information regarding the operating state of the aircraft. The flight management system 150 may include or otherwise have access to one or more of the following: weather systems, air traffic management systems, radar systems, traffic collision avoidance systems, autopilot systems, flight control systems, crew warning systems, electronic checklist systems, electronic flight bags, and/or other suitable avionic systems. In particular, the flight management system 150 may store and/or generate flight plans for travel between a current or initial destination and a final destination.

The

data sources

160, 162, 164 may include any suitable type of data source that may be used to construct or modify a flight plan, such as, for example, the avionics database 160, the navigation system 162, and the communication system 164. Avionics database 160 may store avionics information data including, for example: flight plan data, data about the airway, navigation assistance, navigation data, obstacles, taxi registrations, special-purpose airspaces, administrative boundaries, COM frequencies, approach information, geographic information, and the like. The navigation system 162 is configured to provide real-time navigation data and/or information regarding the operation of the aircraft. The communication system 164 is suitably configured to support communication between the aircraft and another aircraft or ground location (e.g., air traffic control) via a radio system or another suitable data link system.

As introduced above, the display system 110 is particularly useful for displaying flight plans, including by way of example: a flight plan selected or otherwise specified for subsequent execution, a flight plan selected for review (review), and/or a flight plan currently executed by the aircraft. In some embodiments, the flight management system 150 may store predefined flight plans, while in further embodiments, flight plans may be transmitted upward via the communication system 164 and/or manually entered or created by a user via the user interface 140.

In this regard, as used herein, a flight plan should be understood as a sequence of navigational reference points or waypoints that define a flight path or route for an aircraft. In this regard, depending on the particular flight plan and type of air navigation, the navigational reference points may include navigational aids such as VHF omni-directional beacons (VORs), distance measurement Devices (DMEs), tactical air navigation aids (TACANs), and combinations thereof (e.g., VORTACs); landing and/or departure locations (e.g., airports, runways, landing strips, helicopter airports, helicopter take-off and landing sites, etc.); a geographic feature; locating (e.g., an initial approach point (IAF) and/or a final approach point (FAF)); and other navigational reference points used in area navigation. As used herein, the terms "waypoint," "landmark," and "navigation aid" may be considered interchangeable, as the particular terms may vary between aviation, maritime, and motor vehicle populations. As described in more detail below, a flight plan is typically displayed as a textual list of waypoints along the planned flight path in order of their approach to the aircraft. During flight, as the aircraft passes each successive waypoint, that waypoint may be dropped off the list and the remaining successive waypoints moved up the list.

As also described in more detail below, waypoints may be considered to have various types of characteristics, attributes or properties (generally referred to as "characteristics"). These characteristics may be a function of the waypoint itself (function) or a function of the placement of the waypoints within the flight plan. For example, waypoints may be associated with a particular type of aircraft procedure (e.g., a turn or hold procedure) or with specified constraints (e.g., noise, altitude, or speed constraints). As a further example, waypoints may be associated with particular segments of the flight plan (e.g., departures, en route, STAR approaches, missed approaches, and/or alternate flight plans). As a further example, waypoints may be associated with a time attribute, such as a duration from the current location to the waypoint. The exemplary embodiments discussed herein are applicable to any type of waypoint characteristic. As described below, the system 100 generates a display on the display device 130 to provide information to the user regarding these waypoint characteristics.

In general, the flight management system 150 can associate these different characteristics (and associated symbols, discussed below) with waypoints of the flight plan based on various factors. For example, the flight management system 150 may determine waypoint characteristics based on information from the navigation system 162 and/or the avionics database 160 (e.g., identifying waypoints as runways or critical points; identifying a stored defined pattern associated with the waypoints, such as program turns, posted holding patterns, etc.), or based on flight plan modifications (e.g., a crew and/or operator may insert holding patterns at particular waypoints as directed by a ground station). In practice, the flight management system 150 can evaluate and partition the entire flight plan to map waypoints to particular flight phases (or segments), e.g., departure, en route, arrival processes, etc. For example, flight management system 150 may assign waypoints as follows: taking the starting point to the climbing peak as an exit waypoint; from the climb vertex to the descent vertex (including any phase climb) as en route waypoints; and from the descending vertex to the destination as the arrival waypoint. Additionally, some attributes or characteristics are determined by the manner in which the flight plan is programmed into the flight management system 150 (such as, for example, waypoints entered on an alternate flight plan page as part of an alternate flight plan). As described in more detail below, the display system 110 depicts different symbols using these different characteristics defined by the flight management system 150.

FIG. 2 is a display 200 generated by the system 100 of FIG. 1 on the display device 130 according to an example embodiment. As shown, the display 200 includes a first region (or display area) 210 that includes information regarding the navigation and control of the aircraft. In the view of FIG. 2, the first area 210 displays the flight plan in the form of a list 220 with the chronological order of waypoints 222. The characteristics of waypoints 222 and the display of list 220 will be discussed in more detail below.

The current screen page in the first region 210 may be changed or manipulated by pressing one or more mode or function keys 230. Upon selection of waypoint 222 in list 220 and/or one of the additional keys 230, various functions may be enabled, such as entering flight plan data, performance data, and navigation data, and initiating functions such as printing a flight plan and aligning an inertial reference frame. Although not specifically shown, display 200 may also include a multifunction keyboard and temporary storage area.

Returning to the list 220 of waypoints 222 in the first area 210, the information displayed for each waypoint 222 generally includes the name or identifier of the waypoint (e.g., "KSAV"), the location and/or position of the waypoint relative to the aircraft, and other data of interest (e.g., weather or temperature at the waypoint). For simplicity, in the view of FIG. 2, only the identifier for each waypoint 222 is shown, while additional information may be provided adjacent to the corresponding waypoint identifier.

Depending on the viewing settings (e.g., the selected zoom level and the available number of rows on the display device), the first region 210 may only be able to display a portion of the flight plan at a given time due to the length of the list 220. As an example, the list 220 may include hundreds of waypoints 222. In the view of FIG. 2, ten (10) waypoints 222 are shown. In this view, these ten waypoints 222 are the initial ten waypoints of the list 220, with tens of waypoints still in the list "below" the displayed waypoints.

Given the length of the list 220, the display 200 also includes a scroll bar 250 generated adjacent to the first region 210 that enables a user to navigate through the list 220 as desired. Generally, the roller strip 250 includes a long rectangular area, referred to as a rolling area 260 (also referred to as a hoistway or a slot). The scroll bar 250 also includes a scroll indicator 270 (also referred to as a bar, thumb, pointer (puck), slider, or knob) that can be moved by a user within the scroll zone 260. At a given point in time, the position of the scroll indicator 270 corresponds to the position of the list 220 displayed within the first region 210, e.g., if the indicator 270 is located at the bottom of the vertically oriented scroll region 260, the first region 210 displays the lower portion of the list 220. As shown, the initial ten waypoints 222 are displayed with the scroll indicator 270 suitably at the top of the scroll zone 260. Similarly, the height of the indicator 270 relative to the height of the scroll area 260 is generally proportional to the length of the displayed portion relative to the total length of the list 220, although other configurations may be possible.

Using the user interface 140 as a control device (e.g., mouse, knob, touch screen, etc.), the user may interact with the scroll bar 250 to determine which portion of the list 220 to display within the first region 210 at a given time. For example, and referring again to the vertically oriented scroll region 260, the user may drag the indicator 270 to a desired location to scroll the displayed portion of the list 220 up or down. The user may also adjust the indicator 270, and thus the displayed portion, by selecting or clicking over or under the indicator 270 within the scroll area 260 using a vertical arrow (not shown) and/or various keyboard commands (e.g., keyboard arrows or page up or page down keys). Thus, the user may navigate the list 220 using the scroll bar 250, for example, to find a particular waypoint of interest and/or to review portions of the flight plan as necessary or desired.

Given the length of the list 220, visually scanning the various waypoints 222 while manually scrolling through the list 220 may be inefficient when attempting to locate a particular waypoint of interest. To address this issue, display 200 may also provide information regarding one or more waypoints within scroll area 260. The information may correspond to waypoint characteristics discussed below. Waypoint characteristics may be represented by any type of symbol including symbols, text, color, etc.

In the view of FIG. 2, waypoint characteristics corresponding to respective flight plan sections (or phases) are provided in the form of cross-hatching symbols. In particular, the scroll zone 260 is subdivided into

scroll zone sections

280 and 284, each of which corresponds to one of the flight plan sections.

For example, in this particular flight plan, there are five (5) flight plan segments and, thus, the scroll zone 260 includes five (5) scroll zone portions 280-284 corresponding to these segments. In this example, the scroll zone portions 280-284 correspond to the departure/SID segment 280, the in-transit segment 281, the STAR/approach segment 282, the missed approach segment 283, and the alternate flight plan segment 284, respectively.

Each of the waypoints 222 in the list 220 is within one of the segments and thus falls within one of the

scroll zone portions

280 and 284. Adjacent scroll zone portions 280-284 are separated by horizontal bars and each portion 280-284 has a different cross-hatching to more clearly distinguish the segments. In the view of FIG. 2, the indicator 270 is located within a region portion 280 corresponding to the departure/SID segment, thereby indicating that the currently displayed waypoint 222 is part of the departure/SID segment. However, if the user wishes to review waypoints within the missed approach segment of the flight plan, the user may reset indicator 270 into scroll region portion 283. In response, the first region 210 will reset the list 220 to display the waypoints 222 associated with that portion of the scroll region. Rather than scrolling through the various waypoints to search for the desired segment, the scroll bar 250 provides symbols that enable the user to scroll directly to the desired segment. In an exemplary embodiment, the indicator 270 may be partially transparent so that the symbol below the indicator 270 may be viewed.

As also shown in FIG. 2, the first region 210 may include a properties menu 240 that defines the type of information displayed to the operator. In other embodiments, menu 240 may be omitted and the displayed information may be predetermined or preset. In the exemplary embodiment of FIG. 2, the characteristics menu 240 has selections for phase, attribute, and Estimated Time of Arrival (ETA), and in the particular scenario of FIG. 2, the phase characteristics have been selected, as described below. Other features of menu 240 are described below.

Fig. 3 is a display 300 generated by the display device 130 of the visual display system 110 of fig. 1 according to another example embodiment. Display 300 generally corresponds to display 200 of fig. 2, with the exceptions discussed below. In fig. 3, only a portion of the display 300, in particular the first region (or display region) 310 and the scroll bar 350, are shown, however other display features may be provided.

As above, the first area 310 displays the flight plan in the form of a list 320 in chronological order of waypoints 322. Display 300 also includes a properties menu 340 that enables the operator to select the type of information to be displayed. In the scenario of FIG. 3, the phase and attribute characteristics have been selected, as discussed below. Also as above, the display 300 also includes a scroll bar 350 defined by a scroll area 360 and a scroll indicator 370. The scroll zone 360 is divided into scroll zone portions 380-384 corresponding to flight plan sections (e.g., the flight plan sections discussed above in FIG. 2).

In the embodiment of FIG. 3, the display 300 also includes

additional symbols

385 and 389, which represent one or more additional characteristics about the waypoint 322, such as selected by the operator on the menu 340. In this example, the display 300 also includes characteristics corresponding to attributes of a particular waypoint 322 within the list 320. As shown, in the scroll zone section 380-. By way of example, symbol 385 represents the location of the active waypoint; the symbol 386 represents the position of waypoints associated with the turning procedure; symbol 387 represents the position of the waypoint associated with the altitude constraint; symbol 388 represents the position of the waypoint associated with the runway; and symbol 389 represents the location of the waypoint associated with the holding pattern. Any suitable symbol may be used, however as shown in the depicted exemplary embodiment, the symbol may represent the nature of the respective characteristic (e.g., curved arrows represent turns and/or elongated bars represent runways). As such, rather than scrolling through various waypoints to search for a desired waypoint, the scroll bar 350 provides a symbol that enables the user to scroll directly to the waypoint of interest.

Fig. 4 is a display 400 generated by the display device 130 of the visual display system 110 of fig. 1 according to another exemplary embodiment. Display 400 generally corresponds to display 200 of fig. 2, with the exceptions discussed below. In fig. 4, only a portion of the display 400, in particular the first region (or display region) 410 and the scroll bar 450, are shown, however other display features may be provided.

As above, the first area 410 displays the flight plan in the form of a list 420 in chronological order of waypoints 422. Also as above, the display 400 also includes a scroll bar 450 defined by a scroll area 460 and a scroll indicator 470. In this exemplary embodiment, an interface symbol or menu 480 is provided for filtering the waypoints 422 within the list based on particular characteristics. In one exemplary embodiment, menu 480 may include a selection box for activating or deactivating the display of waypoints according to a particular characteristic. In the depicted example, the interface symbols 480 correspond to different flight segments, including a SID segment, an en-route (ENR) segment, a STAR segment, and an Approach (APPR) segment. The user may select or deselect one or more of these boxes within the symbol 480 to display or "hide" the associated segment.

For example, in the depicted embodiment, the SID segment of the interface symbol 480 is selected, and thus only the waypoints 422 associated with the SID segment are displayed. The interface symbol 480 may be combined with one or more of the types of symbols 280-284, 385-389 discussed above in fig. 2 and 3. Because of this embodiment, the operator is only able to view selected segments or phases of the flight, which enables more detailed and/or efficient review of waypoint characteristics. For example, to locate waypoints with holding patterns in an approach segment, the operator may select the filter symbol 480 associated with the approach segment and then more easily view the designated symbol corresponding to the holding pattern that may be displayed on the scroll bar 450 for the corresponding waypoint.

Fig. 5 is a display 500 generated by the display device 130 of the visual display system 110 of fig. 1 according to another example embodiment. Display 500 generally corresponds to display 200 of fig. 2, with the exceptions discussed below. In fig. 5, only a portion of the display 500, in particular the first region (or display region) 510 and the scroll bar 550, are shown, although other display features may be provided.

As above, the first area 510 displays the flight plan in the form of a list 520 in chronological order of the waypoints 522. Also as above, the display 500 also includes a scroll bar 550 defined by a scroll region 560 and a scroll indicator 570. Display 500 also includes a properties menu 540 that enables the operator to select the type of information to be displayed. In the scenario of fig. 5, the phase and Estimated Time of Arrival (ETA) characteristics have been selected, as discussed below. In this example, the phase characteristics of waypoints 522 correspond to those discussed above with reference to fig. 2.

In this exemplary embodiment, additional information associated with waypoint 522 is provided in the form of timing symbol 580. The display 500 may also provide an indication of an estimated (or actual) time of departure 582.

The timing symbols 580 are disposed within the scroll zone 560 and represent approximate arrival times at the respective waypoints. The arrival time may be expressed in terms of minutes from the current time or minutes from the estimated time of departure. As shown, timing symbols 580 may take the form of digital increments, which in the depicted embodiment are 10 minute increments (e.g., 10 minutes, 20 minutes, and 30 minutes) for a total of three increments. By way of example, a timing symbol 580 of "10" corresponds to waypoint 522 within list 520 that is approximately 10 minutes away, while "20" and "30" correspond to waypoint 522 that is approximately 20 and 30 minutes away, respectively. In the depicted embodiment, a 10 minute increment is provided to avoid clutter and to provide clarity for the timing symbols 580 within the scroll zone 560. In some embodiments, the incremental or timing resolution may be a function of the remaining duration. In particular, at longer durations, the increments may be larger; while as the duration decreases, the increments may become finer, such as occurs when flight planning is performed. As a result of this exemplary embodiment, a user may navigate directly to a waypoint or group of waypoints at a desired duration.

FIG. 6 is a flow diagram of a method 600 for generating and displaying an enhanced waypoint list. Method 600 may be implemented with system 100 discussed above, and thus, fig. 1 is referenced below in the discussion of fig. 6.

In a first step 610, the system 100 receives and/or generates a flight plan including a sequential list of waypoints. In step 620, system 100 may identify one or more types of characteristics associated with the waypoints, e.g., as determined by flight management system 150 and/or stored in one of

data sources

160, 162, 164.

In step 630, the system 100 receives a user selection identifying a type of characteristic for display; and in step 640, the system 100 receives a user selection of an identification display filter. The user selections of

steps

630, 640 may be provided via the user interface 140. In some embodiments, user selection of one or both of

steps

630, 640 may be omitted and/or predetermined.

In step 650, display system 110 of system 100 generates a display of a waypoint list, such as those discussed above in FIGS. 2-5, in accordance with the user selection. As also noted above, the display generated in step 650 may include symbols within the displayed scroll bar area that represent waypoint characteristics.

Thus, exemplary embodiments enable more efficient navigation within a flight plan on a display device, such as a text list of waypoints on an MCDU. This allows the user to focus on the task of properly operating the aircraft, rather than on the flight plan page scrolling through the MCDU. Thus, the exemplary embodiments reduce flight crew down time, reduce pilot workload, and improve the efficiency with which pilots operate their aircraft. Exemplary embodiments expedite the processing of flight plan information, reduce the amount of required user interaction, and efficiently display information about desired waypoints or other flight plan elements. It should be noted that the exemplary embodiments of fig. 2-5 are merely representative embodiments, and that other embodiments and/or symbols (including colors, fades, transparencies, etc.) are possible.

Although the subject matter is described herein in the context of aviation, it should be understood that the subject matter may similarly be used in other applications involving a predefined route of travel (e.g., a travel plan or a travel route) or with another vehicle (e.g., a spacecraft, an automobile, a ship, a train, and/or an unmanned aerial or land vehicle), and the subject matter described herein is not intended to be limited to an aviation environment.

Techniques and technologies may be described herein in terms of functional and/or logical block components, and with respect to symbolic representations of operations, processing tasks, and functions that may be performed by various computing components or devices. It should be appreciated that the various block components shown in the figures may be implemented by any number of hardware, software, and/or firmware components configured to perform the specified functions. For example, embodiments of the system or component may employ various integrated circuit components, e.g., memory elements, digital signal processing elements, logic elements, look-up tables, or the like, which may carry out a variety of functions under the control of one or more microprocessors or other control devices.

For the sake of brevity, conventional techniques related to graphics and image processing, navigation, flight planning, aircraft control, and other functional aspects of the systems (and the individual operating components of the systems) may not be described in detail herein. Furthermore, the connecting lines shown in the various figures contained herein are intended to represent example functional relationships and/or physical couplings between the various elements. It should be noted that many alternative or additional functional relationships or physical connections may be present in an embodiment of the subject matter.

While at least one exemplary embodiment has been presented in the foregoing detailed description of the invention, it should be appreciated that a vast number of variations exist. It should also be appreciated that the exemplary embodiment or exemplary embodiments are only examples, and are not intended to limit the scope, applicability, or configuration of the invention in any way. Rather, the foregoing detailed description will provide those skilled in the art with a convenient road map for implementing an exemplary embodiment of the invention. It being understood that various changes may be made in the function and arrangement of elements described in an exemplary embodiment without departing from the scope of the invention as set forth in the appended claims.

Claims

1. An aircraft system comprising:

a flight management system configured to generate a flight plan having a plurality of waypoints;

a processing unit coupled to a flight management system and configured to receive the flight plan, the processing unit further configured to generate display commands representing the flight plan as a list of waypoints;

a display device coupled to the processing unit and configured to receive the display command and to render a first region having a portion of the list of waypoints and a scroll bar adjacent to the first region, wherein the scroll bar includes a scroll region based on user input and a scroll indicator located within the scroll region to modify the portion of the list displayed in the first region, and wherein the display device is further configured to render a first symbol within the scroll region that represents a first characteristic associated with at least one of the waypoints in the flight plan; and

a user interface coupled to the processing unit and configured to receive a user selection of a first characteristic from the plurality of characteristics, the processing unit configured to generate a display command based on the user selection, and wherein the display device is configured to display a menu of the plurality of characteristics and the user interface is configured to receive the user selection via the menu on the display device,

wherein the first characteristic is a flight plan segment and the first symbol represents a respective flight plan segment for each of the waypoints, and wherein the scroll region is subdivided into scroll region portions each comprising the first symbol in cross-hatched form representing the respective flight plan segment for each of the scroll region portions; and

wherein the display device is further configured to render a second symbol within the scroll zone that represents a second characteristic associated with at least one of waypoints in the flight plan, and wherein the second characteristic is waypoint attributes including at least one of a turn, an active waypoint, an altitude constraint, a runway, and a holding pattern, the second symbol including a different symbol for each type of waypoint attribute.

2. The aircraft system of claim 1 wherein the display device is a Multifunction Control Display Unit (MCDU).

3. The aircraft system of claim 1, wherein the display device is further configured to render a third symbol within the scroll zone that represents a third characteristic associated with at least one of the waypoints in the flight plan, the first characteristic is an estimated time of arrival, and the first symbol comprises a numerical representation of the estimated time of arrival for each of the waypoints.

4. The aircraft system of claim 1, wherein the processing unit is configured to receive a filter selection and generate a display command such that the display device renders the list of waypoints based on the filter selection.